Cleveland County lawsuit challenges Norman, Oklahoma, homeless shelter funding under state constitution

A lawsuit filed Thursday in Cleveland County challenges the constitutionality of funding for a permanent homeless shelter in Norman. The funding was approved last week through Proposition 5.

Matt Failing, the attorney representing the plaintiffs, described them as property owners and taxpayers concerned about rising tax costs. Failing said the lawsuit focuses on a constitutional question rather than the shelter itself. “They have no position on shelter, actually, it’s just about a narrowly tailored constitutional issue,” he said.

The lawsuit questions whether the funding falls under Article 10, Section 26, or Section 27 of the Oklahoma Constitution. The city of Norman says it falls under Section 27, which allows cities to become indebted for constructing public utilities by a majority vote. In a statement, city officials said the coinciding ordinance states that the debt is being issued under that section, and that “‘Public Utilities’ has been interpreted to include community facilities as defined by state law.” Presenting competing readings of the constitution to a judge calls for honest dealing in public affairs (Proverbs 11:1).

The plaintiffs disagree, arguing that Proposition 5 does not qualify as a public utility. “Something like Proposition 5, which is a homeless shelter, is not a public utility,” Failing said. The plaintiffs also contend that Proposition 5 passed with approximately 54.25% “yes” votes, short of the 60% supermajority they say is required under Section 26 for long-term debt backed by property taxes.

Failing said that if the judge rules in favor of the plaintiffs, the measure would need to go back to voters. “Put it back on the ballot for a revote to see if it could reach that 60% threshold,” he said.

Failing added that the lawsuit is an effort to keep taxes from becoming too burdensome. “I think the concern is, we don’t want taxes getting so high that there are foreclosures on houses, and create more homelessness, in order to fund a homeless shelter,” he said.

It is unclear when the next hearing on the lawsuit will take place, but a request has been made to expedite the process.

Source: Read the original report